Three-penny beaver block stars in sale of Brigham collection

Lot 1 features the famous “Dale-Lichtenstein” mint block of Canada’s 1851 three-penny beaver. It has a pre-sale estimate of $150,000-plus.

Eastern Auctions’ Part II of the Ron Brigham Estate Province of Canada auction on Aug. 19 features many rarities and material that hasn’t “surfaced” at auction for more than 40 years. “Many of these have not surfaced at auction since the 1980s, to our surprise more than 40 years ago,” says Yohann Tanguay, Eastern’s chief... Continue reading →

‘Eastern hospitality,’ lobster and philately on tap for BNAPEX

Visit bnaps.org and click on BNAPEX news for all the details on this September’s convention in Halifax, N.S.

People heading to Halifax, N.S. this September for BNAPEX, the annual convention of the British North America Philatelic Society, can expect to receive “an abundance of Eastern hospitality.” That’s the commitment of this year’s co-chairs: Gary Steele, George Lafontaine and Jeff Parks. All three are members of the Nova Scotia Stamp Club, which is co-hosting... Continue reading →

Hobby gaining steam in Canada, RPSC reports

More than 70 members of the Royal Philatelic Society of Canada attended its June 11 virtual annual general meeting.

Philately in Canada is gaining momentum with new collectors embracing the hobby, as observed at the June 11 annual general meeting of the Royal Philatelic Society of Canada (RPSC). “I’ve been noticing over the last several months I am getting quite a few new customers,” dealer Christopher McFetridge said as he shared his “observation” during... Continue reading →

New books dig deep into Quebec postal history

Cimon Morin holds volume two of La poste coloniale au Québec, 1763-1851.

Two books meticulously documenting the history of the Quebec postal service are now available through the Société d’histoire postale du Québec (SHPQ). They are written by Cimon Morin, who worked for 30 years as manager of the Canadian Postal Archives. The first of these books is focused on the post offices that were established along the... Continue reading →

Orapex’s 60th also ‘the best,’ says longtime show dealer

The judges at Orapex 2023 had a challenging task as the 60th anniversary of the national show drew numerous impressive exhibits.

Orapex 2023 not only drew “high-calibre” exhibits, but also crushed past attendance and set sales records for stamp dealers during the May 6-7 show at Ottawa’s Nepean Sportsplex. “Orapex 2023 was very successful in terms of the general public attending, dealer satisfaction, great exhibits, and well-attended philatelic meetings and open-to-the-public philatelic presentations,” said committee chair... Continue reading →

War Issue plate set, SPM collection hit auction block

A ‘remarkable trio in immaculate condition,’ Lot 42 features a set of three single-franking provisionals and is expected to bring at least $7,500 from James R. Taylor’s St. Pierre and Miquelon collection.

A comprehensive collection on St. Pierre and Miquelon formed over decades by prolific author James R. Taylor will be featured in Eastern Auctions’ May 25-27 sale. “James Taylor is an authority on the subject,” according to Yohann Tanguay, Eastern’s chief describer. “Many years of diligent collecting and research by Taylor have culminated in several gold-medal... Continue reading →

Colour Innovations ‘not a regular printer’

Since 2015, Colour Innovations has been providing start-to-finish security printing services to print Canadian stamps.

This year, the Toronto-based security printer Colour Innovations will mark its 35th anniversary, including nearly a decade bidding on Canadian stamp-printing contracts. The firm previously supplied prepress services to Canada Post before serving as a subcontractor to one of the Crown corporation’s main printers beginning in 2003. More recently, in 2015, Colour Innovations began offering... Continue reading →

Exploring Stamps with ‘extreme philately’

Exploring Stamps podcast host Graham Beck (right), of New Jersey, accepts an honourary membership for the North Toronto Stamp Club from the group’s membership chair Les Selby at CAPEX 22 last June in Toronto.

With nearly 40,000 followers across his social media accounts, one philatelic influencer has propelled the hobby into the 21st century with an “extreme” take on collecting stamps. Graham Beck grew up in South Africa, where he collected new issues with his childhood friends, before moving to the United States, where he now lives in New Jersey.... Continue reading →

Brigham Collection ‘out of this world’

Late philatelist Ron Brigham, who died in August, provided Canada Post with the original black die proof for the 1851 three-pence ‘Beaver’ stamp when the Crown corporation designed a replica issue for the stamp’s 150th anniversary in 2001. The proof sold for $62,500 on a $35,000 estimate as Lot 2.

The first of four sales of Ron Brigham’s international Grand Prix-winning Province of Canada collection, the last material held by the late philatelist before his death last August, rewrote the record books in the days leading up to spring. The March 17 sale offered 163 lots centring on the three-pence and five-cent “Beaver” issues (Scott #1... Continue reading →

Conversations with Philatelists united collectors during pandemic

Past guests on the Conversations with Philatelists podcast include (clockwise from top left) Australian-born philatelist Peter Congreve, Doobie Brothers founder Pat Simmons, senior Republican presidential advisor Karl Rove and organizers of the Westpex show in California.

With the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic spreading illness, fear and uncertainty, the cancellation of virtually all in-person events spurred two U.S. collectors to fill the social void in the philatelic community. Trying to match the camaraderie of mingling with people at stamp shows, Michael Cortese and Charles Epting launched Conversations with Philatelists, a... Continue reading →

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